Background
An imaginative and whimsical take on contemporary Paris, Amélie, the 2001 French film directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet from a story he devised with the film’s screenwriter, Guillaume Laurant, is a feel-good fan favorite that follows a young waitress, Amélie on her quest to be helpful and spread joy.
Although originally written for actress Emily Watson, a scheduling conflict led director Jeunet to audition Audrey Tautou based on having seen her on a movie poster for 1999’s Venus Beauty Institute. The first actress seen, Tautou won the part, and filming took place between March and early July in and around the Montmartre district of Paris. Computer-generated imaging, including CG animation, was employed in post. Plot-wise, young Amélie is mistakenly thought to have been born with a heart defect and is sheltered from the world, especially after her mother’s death in a tragic accident. Leaving home at eighteen, she is employed in the Cafe des 2 Moulins in Montmartre. When Amélie finds a box containing memorabilia, she sets about returning it to its rightful owner. She identifies the box’s owner, Nino, and a “cat and mouse game” evolves into a romance. Initially released in European countries in April of 2001, Amélie then made its way around the European festival circuit before seeing limited release in the US. Judged unfit for Cannes by the screening judges, the film nonetheless gathered steam with French audiences despite a somewhat mixed critical response. Variety’s Lisa Nesselson said “If Paris were destroyed tomorrow and the recipe for true love lost, archeologists could reconstruct both to perfection from just a reel of “Amélie From Montmartre.” Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s fresh, funny, exquisitely bittersweet tour de force, about a lass who makes sly incursions into the lives of her neighbors, is ambitious yet intimate.” From the New York Times Elvis Mitchell: “Perhaps after living under a studio’s demands for a fourth-in-the-series “Alien” sequel, Mr. Jeunet decided to build his own universe from the ground up. Maybe, too, after the violence — spiritual and physical — of his earlier films, he wanted his latest tale to glisten with optimism. This balletic mix of whimsy and fairy tale could potentially err on the side of self-infatuation, but Mr. Jeunet moves so fast that the movie never stops to ogle its beautiful reflection.”
On its opening weekend in France, Amélie played on 432 screens and was number one. Remaining in the top ten for 22 weeks, it was France’s highest-grossing film for the year at $41 million. One of France’s biggest international film successes, the film took in $174.2 million worldwide.
Nominated for five Academy Awards, Amélie ultimately was voted Best Film at the European Film Awards and at the Césars, where it also won Best Director, Best Production Design, and Best Music. At the British Academy Film Awards, it took home prizes for Best Original Screenplay and Best Production Design. Jean-Pierre Jeunet received a Golden Eagle and European Film Award for Best Director. Although a Broadway musical based on Amélie closed after just 56 performances, the film has aged well and continues to score well with critics and audiences alike.